When is Fighting the Enemy not Permissible

There is a saheehhadith in Imam Ahmad collection that the Messenger of Allah (s) said:

“Give glad tidings to this ummah of a high status in the sight of Allah, aid from Allah, empowerment in the earth. So whoever from them does a righteous action of the hereafter for the dunya he will have no reward for it in the hereafter.”

So the glad tiding will come and the promise is true without any doubt. But comprehend the condition of this glad tiding which is Sincerity. As he (s) states: “So whoever from them does a righteous action of the hereafter for the dunya..” This action in its appearance will look good but the intention behind it is for the dunya, so they will not be helped by Allah. What about the one who does not do a righteous action, rather he does evil deeds??

<…and let him not associate any partners with Allah in his worship..> Surah Khaf

So the condition, is that the actions we do, must not contain any shirk inside it, it should be solely for the sake of Allah.

<…and they have not been ordered except to worship Allah sincerely making religion for himalone..> Surah Al Bayinah

A group of believers went out with the Messenger of Allah in the battle of Hunayn amongst them were those who were new in Islam. They passed by a tree, which the mushrikeen use to hang their swords on for good luck, called Dhaatul Anwaat. They said to the Messenger: oh Messenger of Allah make for us a Dhaatul Anwaat just as they havea Dhaatul Anwaat

The Messenger said to them: “Allahu Akbar or Subhan-Allah by he who’s hand my soul is in, verily it is a sunnan, you have said a thing which the people of Musa said: <Make for us a god like unto their God.>Araf 138

The Messenger did not leave them to say what they want because they were new in Islam, because it is not permissible to remain silent with regards the rights of Allah that he should be worshiped alone. This is an enormous condition.

So as long as this ummah does not take heed in establishing tawheed. As long as this ummah remains silent over the magicians, sorcerers, those who give out ta’weez, worshipers of graves, worshipers of peers and faqeers it is not possible for this ummah to witness help from Allah, to witness empowerment on the earth.

Also contemplate the anger of the messenger of Allah upon what they asked for. And understand they only asked for hanging the swords, they did not worship the tree or call upon it, or eat its dirt, or place flowers around it, or do tawaf around it. Yet He (s) still admonished them.

Contemplate also, that the Messenger (s) was on his way to battle. With all the worries on his mind of preparing and engaging in battle he stopped all that to attend to a matter of Tawheed and shirk! He did not say, I will deal with this problem after the battle, because of its serious nature and connection to victory of the imminent battle ahead.

How do you think his (s) anger would be upon those who actually call for help and aid from a person in his grave or carry some of the soil from his grave in his pocket or around his neck? or do tawaf around the grave.

Ibnu Qayim (rh) said:

If by taking this tree to hang swords on it, and stand around it is associating partners with Allah. Bearing in mind they did not worship it and did not ask anything of it, then what about standing around a grave and calling upon the dead for help?[1]

Today, we find amongst us those who blame the people of tawheed for not going out to fight with them in jihad when they fight with worshipers of graves and people of shirk and biddah.

We find them complaining about unity and blaming us for causing disunity. What unity will come, what victory will come what aid and help will come from Allah if we do not free ourselves from shirk and biddah.

Ibn Taymiah teaches tawheed in a defensive battle:

When the tatar took aver the land of Shaam, the Muslims went out to fight them, amongst them were those who were involved in doing acts of shirk. Ibn Taymiah use to correct their aqeedah and call them to tawheed as he mentioned in his reply to al Bakari were he states…

“And some of our elders from the shayookh of those who have insight from our companions use to say: this is the greatest thing you have clarified for us: “that this knowledge is from the fundamentals of the religion.” And this person and others like him use to call upon the dead, believing they were present. They may have done worse than that because they would only call upon the dead in extreme circumstances, calling for a cure and aid and help…when the enemies would come they would call upon the dead seeking help in the deceased from the difficulty facing them…” [2]

You should know that this battle Ibn Taymiah is speaking about was a defensive Jihad, as some say when it is defensive we do not need to correct the tawheed before we defend. On the contrary, here you can see Ibn Taymiah correcting their aqeeda first.

Even if there were righteous people in the army, which contained shirk they would be defeated.

Ibn Taymiah then said after these words: “Those who seek help from them (the dead) if they were with you in the fighting they would be defeated as those of the Muslims who were in the battle of Ahud were defeated.”

So understand here the importance of correcting the aqeeda of those who fight or call themselves ‘mujahideen’. Even if there were righteous amongst them they would loose.

And what about those who fight and wage war on the people of tawheed how would it be if you fought in their rows. (Like in Afghanistan the 7 party alliance)

Ibn Taymiah brought an excellent point here because those Muslims who took part in the battle of Uhud did not do shirk, or call to shirk, they sinned, they disobeyed Allah Messenger. What about those of today who make shirk, call to shirk and fight the people of tawheed calling them wahaabis and so on.

Is it comprehendible that the Muslims will be victorious, will be empowered by Allah and be raised in his sight when they have so much shirk and biddah in them? Is it truly possible for us to get victory right now?

“Give glad tidings to this ummah of a high status in the sight of Allah, aid from Allah, empowerment in the earth. So whoever from them does a righteous action of the hereafter for the dunya he will have no reward for it in the hereafter.”

He who left fighting because of biddah and shirk

Then he Ibn Taymiah may Allah have mercy on him said:

This is why the people of knowledge of this religion did not fight at that time because of the lack of legislative fighting which Allah and his Messenger ordered with. They did not fight because of the evil and corruption and impossibility of attaining Allah help, where there would be no reward in the dunya or the hereafter…many of them who took part in this fighting though it was unlegislative they will be rewarded for their intention…[3]

Umar Ibn Abdul Aziz said:

“Do not fight with the Qadariyah because they will not be aided by Allah.”[4]

Victory of the Muslims against the Tatar came only after they corrected their Aqeeda

Then he Ibn Taymiah said:

“And when the people fixed their affairs and where truthful in their asking for help and aid from their lord he helped them against their enemy with a mighty aid, such that the Tatars where never defeated in such a way before. So when the correct worship of Allah and following of his Messenger was applied, which did not exist before then Allah helps his Messenger and those who believe in this life and the hereafter…”[5]

This clearly shows there is no empowerment in the earth until the correct religion is empowered first. As Allah states:

< VerilyAllah will not change a condition of a people until they change their themselves …> Ar-Rad, verse11